Well, that was a year that was, wasn't it. The Prime Minister Theresa May surprised us with a snap election and went from Tory hero to zero.
The Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn did better than expected.

It looked eminently possible that the Conservatives, who just two years before had won their first parliamentary majority in 22 years, could implode under the burden of Brexit.

The irony is that it suits a divided party to be sort of stable under a weak leader and that May will carry the can. An election would be better to get a strong Labour government to handle the big question which is what sort of deal we negotiate with the EU and what sort of country we become for decades to come.

I accept we are leaving the EU. The trouble is that the referendum did not specify how. And there are many ways of doing so.

My view is that it is best done in a way that suits our collective interests on jobs, trade, public services, and easy movement. I am glad that our sovereign parliament will have a say on the final deal and that this is done in the open.

My job as an MP is to uphold the interests of North Tyneside and the country as a whole in these difficult circumstances.

May I wish all News Guardian readers and my constituents a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and prosperous New Year.